It's time for young Cotterpin Doozer to wear her helmet and build like all the other Doozers, but the maverick Cotterpin would rather draw and play than work. Adopting Red Fraggle as her new hero, Cotterpin leaves the Doozers behind and decides to become one of the Fraggles instead.

Contents

Fraggle Facts

The Doozers live in an ordered society centered in one cave in Fraggle Rock. The only apparent ruler in their society is the Architect, who directs the most important aspect of their lives -- their Doozer-construction building.

The Architect mentions previous Doozers who did not take the helmet. They were Old Man Pipe Wrench Doozer, Disk Drive Doozer, Putty Knife Doozer, who was most contrary, and himself.

It is also revealed in this episode that Doozers undergo a special ceremony when they become workers. This ceremony is mostly made up of a song. The Architect delivers the vows and the young Doozers taking the helmets must promise to keep those vows, then the older Doozers renew their vows.

Notes

While individual Doozers had been featured in earlier episodes, this is the first to focus entirely on Doozer society. Flange and Wingnut Doozer were seen in "The Great Radish Famine," and this episode introduces their daughter Cotterpin, who will become the most prominent Doozer in the series. This episode also introduces the Architect and Cotterpin's friend Wrench. It's also the first time that we see the Doozer home cave, and there's a long loving first look at it, a shot clearly designed to show off the new set.

Fraggle Rock's overall vision was to promote peace and cultural understanding for all people, and this episode is another important step in achieving that vision. The Gorgs are already well-established as threatening but also lovable and misunderstood; they are only dangerous because they're so chuckle-headed that they can't communicate with the Fraggles. By this point in the second season, the Doozers are still seen as alien creatures that the Fraggle can't understand or identify with, and this episode finally begins to show the Rock from the Doozers' point of view. However, it's interesting to note that the Doozer the audience is invited to identify with is a renegade from Doozer culture, and the qualities that make her endearing and interesting are the Fraggle-like tendencies that make her un-Doozerish. It isn't until a few episodes later in "The Doozer Contest" that we see an episode that takes place within normal Doozer culture.

There's another affectionate backstage reference in this episode -- When Doc brings the mail in, he exclaims happily, "Oh, another letter from Duncan." Duncan Kenworthy, the original Fraggle Rock producer, left the show after the first block of twelve episodes.

The windows at Red´s cave are at Fraggle face level. So how did Cotterpin get up there to look through them? And more importantly: WHY did she climb up there? If she wanted to see if Red is at home, it would have been a lot easier for the Doozer to peek through the doorhole.